Department of Defense 2016 Operational Energy Strategy
Abstract
This document sets forth an updated Operational Energy Strategy for the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), as required by law and first issued in 2011. This updated strategy recognizes the crucial role of energy in enabling our forces to perform worldwide missions, while also acknowledging energy as a potential vulnerability. Energy is a fundamental enabler of military capability, and the ability of the United States to project and sustain the power necessary for defense depends on the assured delivery of this energy. It must be available at home and abroad, over great distances, through adverse weather, and across air, land, and sea, often against determined adversaries. As defined in law, operational energy is the "energy required for training, moving, and sustaining military forces and weapons platforms for military operations." This term includes energy used by tactical power systems and generators, as well as by weapons platforms themselves. The Department considers operational energy to be the energy used in military operations, in direct support of military operations, and in training that supports unit readiness for military operations, to include the energy used at non-enduring locations (contingency bases). Traditionally, the scope of operational energy excludes nuclear energy used for the propulsion of the U.S. Navy's aircraft carriers and submarines, as well as the energy used for military space launch and operations. The mission, design, and physics mean that these systems, by their nature, avoid many of the challenges associated with resupplying other military air, sea, and land capabilities with liquid fuel. The Department relies on the extensive expertise of the Navy and Air Force in these areas to ensure these separate domains execute in a safe and effective manner that accounts for their unique energy requirements.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 03, 2015
- Accession Number
- ADA627624
Entities
Organizations
- United States Assistant Secretary of Defense